Quick! Name a Pretentious Synonym for “Custom-Made” Once upon a time, the adjective “bespoke” applied to exactly one thing: clothes. Specifically, high-end, custom clothes like men’s suits and shirts, or women’s gowns (although I think “couture” was and is the more popular term for the latter) . Now? Here’s a partial list of things (and...Read More
New Oven: $500. New Wall: $3,000 One of the stealth issues for prospective home Buyers is the old-but-still functioning wall oven — often times, two of them. The risk, which rises with the oven’s age: that the model has been discontinued, and there’s not a same-size replacement. When that’s the case, the fix isn’t just a new...Read More
Looking for a Size 47 1/2 How is drafting a real estate contract — or almost any contract, for that matter — like picking a men’s suit? In both cases, the usual starting point is to select the closest-fitting, existing garment — er, legal boilerplate — you can find. Step #2: altering (“customizing”) it to fit...Read More